Weapons of the Righteous – Resting in the Lord

Years ago while at a worship service, I was soaking in God’s presence when the word “taskmaster” popped in my mind.   I was excited, I was thinking, “Yes Lord, this is what you are to me – a Taskmaster.” It wasn’t long after, I realized that God wasn’t showing me He was my Taskmaster, but that I had the wrong impression of Him.  Good performance made me feel accepted by man, hence, this translated into my relationship with God.   It wasn’t until I came to a point in my life where because of circumstances I was no longer in the position to toil for acceptance that I was forced to be still.  Then, I truly began to know God and become immersed in the immense love He has for me.   It finally sunk in that I did not need to labor for His love, and all I had to do was rest in Him and His love.  That was a life-changing revelation.

Unfortunately, the atmosphere in many of our churches are not conducive for rest.  We are respecters of persons, placing greater esteem on those who can do more and those who have more. Environments like these are breeding grounds for the enemy to inoculate us with his lies that we are less than who God created us to be.  This can result in unrest as some look at other church members with resentment because they are seen as being favored more by leaders, while these same church workers are angry and burnt out, with the perception that they are arduously carrying out tasks as others look on.   Remember Mary and Martha? 

But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up to Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me.” But the Lord answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.”  Luke 10: 40-42 (NASB)

There is just so much going on in this passage.   However, what stands out first to me is that Martha questioned if Jesus cared because she was serving alone.   I understand Martha.  For several years I have done ministry in the inner city basically solo, and I have wondered why God would not answer my prayers to send good Christians to help me on the ground as I battle on the frontlines. But, I have come to rest in the fact that the Lord is with me and the battle is His.  He will fight for me and all I need to do is be still. The words used to describe Martha are also quite telling – distracted, worried and bothered.  How many times have we taken our focus off the Father while being distracted by our efforts to please Him and others with our good works?  We get worried and bothered when our tasks seem unending and there is little help, yet our Lord has called us to rest at His feet, like Mary, because this is the better way.   Actually, when we are distracted, worried and bothered we are out of position to truly hear God.   Martha was physically out Jesus’ presence often as she scurried around busily serving. Moreover, as she darted back and forth making sure everything was in place, her mind was out of place for His words to penetrate her soul.  Angry, annoyed and feeling self-pity, she could not hear God clearly.  Neither can we when our minds are under assault from the enemy with fear, pride, resentment, nightmares and an assortment of artillery that he uses against us to obscure the voice of God.

Far too many Christians are entangled in worldly affairs instead of pleasing the Father by resting in His presence, so that He will give us understanding in everything.  We also try so hard to do for God, when He just desires us to be in Him.  A tree does not struggle to be a tree, it just is.  In John 15, Jesus called Himself the Vine and we, His followers, the branches.  He stated that He should abide in us, and we should remain in Him in order to bear fruit, because apart from Him, we can do nothing.  Frankly, a lot of us are busy doing nothing, because it is not in Christ.  Therefore, we are not glorifying the Father.   As a matter of fact, we weary ourselves out, giving the devil much pleasure as we seek to accomplish tasks in our own strength that are not God ordained.  As a consequence, we may never enter God’s rest.

Therefore, since the promise of entering His rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it. For we also have had the good news proclaimed to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because they did not share the faith of those who obeyed.  Now we who have believed enter that rest, just as God has said,

“So I declared on oath in My anger,
    ‘They shall never enter My rest.’”

And yet His works have been finished since the creation of the world. For somewhere He has spoken about the seventh day in these words: “On the seventh day God rested from all His works.”  And again in the passage above He says, “They shall never enter my rest.” Hebrews 4:1-5 (NIV)

I don’t know about you, but I do not want to miss out on God’s rest, and this is not just about the seventh day, but every day in my life I want to repose in the rest that God has promised us.  Too many of us get so bent out of shape declaring and decreeing, and naming and claiming promises that are not really ours, but what we want for ourselves.   This is when we need to turn the crafty serpent’s words on himself and ask, “Did God really say?” (Genesis 3:1).  If He said it, He will do it.  If it is His promise, He will fulfill it.  Actually, He has already done it.  God’s work has been completed from the formation of His creation.  We don’t have to try to make anything happen.  So, let us unbend and make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will perish by following their example of disobedience. Hebrews 4:11   God was angry with the people in the above Scriptures because they out of unbelief, disobeyed Him, resulting in their forfeiting His rest and the Promised Land.  

Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him;
Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way,
Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes. 

Psalm 37:7 (NASB)

In Jamaica there is a saying, “Nuh watch no face,” which simply means that we shouldn’t worry about what anyone thinks.   It leads to trouble when we are worried and bothered that people may look down on us for not having the “right things.” As children of God we should not be defined by the success of this world. 

But godliness actually is a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment. For we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either. If we have food and covering, with these we shall be content. But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction. 

1 Timothy 6:6-9 (NASB)

We drive the devil crazy when we are content with whatever we own or don’t own, and give out of the little that we may have, instead of trying to accumulate material stuff out of greed and pride.  We must not forget that we are in an upside down Kingdom, where the first is last, and where we as children of the Most High God are to be lowly servants.  We can rest knowing that because we are His children, God sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” So we are no longer slaves, but God’s children; and since we are His children, God has made us also heirs in His Kingdom. (Galatians 4:6-7)  And, He rejoices over us as we rest in Him. 

The Lord your God in your midst,
The Mighty One, will save;
He will rejoice over you with gladness,
He will quiet you with His love,
He will rejoice over you with singing. 

Zephaniah 3:17 (NKJV)

This translation of this verse allows me to conjure up an image of a loving parent looking down adoringly at his baby resting securely in his arms while singing, lulling the baby into peaceful sleep.  Abba, Father does the same for us.  He invites us into His rest in His loving arms, in which no one can pluck us out.  He is joyful that we are in His arms.  We are His and He is ours.  We become one with Him as we rest in Him and stay connected to the Vine.  

Weapons of the Righteous – Committing Your Way to the Lord

I look back at my life and think of the numerous times I have made plans and expected God to go along with them and bless all I wanted to do.  Most times, I never even thought of asking God what His will was for me.  Therefore, I used my own wisdom and strength to come up with a strategy to carry out my own wishes. Unfortunately, it didn’t work that well for me.   Yet, all these failures were quite fortuitous as they led me to seek God more and draw closer to Him.  Now, I know that I must commit all my ways to God, and also trust Him, and He will do it (Psalm 37:5).   I may have had my plans, but God directed my path. 

In our self-will, we try to reason out God’s ways and thoughts, which are so much higher than ours. How can we truly comprehend a Father who sends a Son, who relinquishes His glory to come down to a corrupt world in order to save those who rebelled against Him, while they were being besieged by sin?  It is incomprehensible, yet we try to box in this mysterious God in our limited minds. Impetuously, we put ourselves in the position of His consultants, giving Him directives on how He should grant our wishes, like a genie in a bottle, rather than the Lord of our lives. 

Committing our way to the Lord may be uncomfortable, inconvenient, tedious or even terrifying.  The Gospel of Matthew records the mother of James and John requesting that Jesus would have her sons sit on the right and left sides of Him in His kingdom. His response was to ask if they were able to drink of the cup He was about to drink.  They said they were.   This was the same cup that Jesus asked His Father to let pass, if it were His will.  But, it wasn’t, and so Jesus drank this cup of suffering because He was devoted to the Father.  Later, James was killed serving the Lord, and John was put in exile.  They both had a hard road following their Master, but they were committed to this straight and narrow path, not deviating to the right or to the left.

Throughout the Scriptures we see men and women encountering a great deal of difficulties as they stayed the course that God had set out for them.   Isaiah went naked and barefooted for three years; David though anointed king, was on the run and living in caves for many years; Joseph was thrown in a pit and wrongfully imprisoned; and Mary had to face the shame and possibly the death penalty being pregnant out of wedlock as she carried her Savior.  There was also Jeremiah who was beaten and jailed because he was doing God’s will. 

For each time I speak, I cry aloud;
I proclaim violence and destruction,
Because for me the word of the Lord has resulted
In reproach and derision all day long.
But if I say, “I will not remember Him
Or speak anymore in His name,”
Then in my heart it becomes like a burning fire
Shut up in my bones;
And I am weary of holding it in,
And I cannot endure it. Jeremiah 20:8-9

Jeremiah, no matter how he tried to stop speaking the word of God, was compelled to, as his heart was for God and His Words burned within him.   He couldn’t hold in God’s Words, he had to let it out, even though it meant that he would face persecution.  The list of suffering saints is lengthy, however, are we willing to join this roll call of committed servants of God who are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed? (2 Corinthians 4:8-9)

 

Being committed to God’s ways is not just about the extraordinary, but also about the drudgeries of ordinary life.   It means being Christ-like when no one is looking, knowing the Father has His eyes on us at all times, while giving Him control of every area of our lives.  Even our mouths are to come under subjection to the Lord.

Now then go, and I, even I, will be with your mouth, and teach you what you are to say.” Exodus 4:12

This applies not only to Moses, who lacked confidence in His speech, but also to us who might not speak life, but death into our lives and the lives of those around us.  Speech that is committed to the Lord is wholesome and not a corrupting influence, it is good for building up and it is right on time to give grace to those who hear it (Ephesians 4:29).  All we have to do is open our mouths and let the Lord fill it with His words.  We also need to have eyes that see what God wants us to see and ears that hear what He wants us to hear. Actually, our whole bodies are to be living and holy sacrifices, acceptable to God – this is the true and proper worship, which He desires (Romans 12:1).  Paul wrote to the Corinthians asking them, “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?   This question is still appropriate for today’s Christians.  We do as we please with our bodies, not acknowledging we are the temple of God, which is to be kept holy.

Holiness does not appear to be popular among many Christians right now.  It seems that it is avoided in many of our pulpits in order not to scare away people from church.  However, we can’t try to please man over God, who tells us to be holy as He is holy.  Duplicitously, we say we are filled with the Holy Spirit, then out of the same mouth we say that this is the way we are and we can’t change.  We negate the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives through our actions and words as we are merely hearers and not doers of the Word. Many of us have not come out of our grave clothes even though Jesus has given us victory over the grave.  We are wrapped up, tied up, and tangled up in our old way of life.  Not forgetting the things of the past, we cannot move forward into what God has ahead for us.   Wearied with worry, we lack endurance to press forward to the goal to win the prize of the Heavenly calling of God in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:13-14).  God is ready to forgive us, but we won’t forgive others and even ourselves, therefore, bitterness and resentment keep their grip on us.

Jesus, after raising Lazarus from the dead, told the people to unbind him and let him go.  However, sometimes we don’t want the people who God has put around us to help loose us from sin and the mess in our lives as we fear they will hurt us, and so we feel that we can’t trust them.  We miss the point that God did not tell us to trust them, but to trust Him as He is in charge of releasing us from the bondage of our past.  They are His hands and feet.  God never created us to be alone, we are to lift the other up when one falls, sharpen each other, and encourage each other in our walk with Christ.  Yes, we may get hurt, but God heals, hence, we should commit this process to Him, in order that we will be forever transformed for His glory.   It is time to let go of the strife, jealousy, anger, selfish ambition, slander, gossip, arrogance, and disorder in our lives.  We can’t just be about ourselves.  We need to reflect Jesus to those around us.  Frequently, we are prideful, concerned about our reputation before others, rather than our representation of Christ to others.   We are to be ambassadors of Christ, who was of no repute and who was not a respecter of persons.  His love changed lives as it touched hardened hearts.   Our commitment to His way will ensure that we too value those who society deems unworthy, seek the unreachable, and love the unlovable.